Inquiry finds 1,069 phonehacking victims

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LONDON, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- The official in charge of investigating Britain's media phone hacking scandal said more than 1,000 victims have been identified.

Sue Akers, the retiring deputy assistant commissioner, told a Parliamentary committee Scotland Yard has identified 4,744 potential victims, many of whom are not traceable. Of those potential victims, 1,069 have been positively identified as having been hacked. Most have been notified by police of the crime perpetrated against them.

Eight people have been charged with a conspiracy to hack into people's phone messages and 25 arrests have been made. Of that group, 12 are former journalists.

London's now-defunct News of the World tabloid, owned by Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch, had been named as a major culprit in the investigation, its reporters and editors routinely hacking into sources' voice mail inboxes to cull information published in the paper.

Secondary allegations of bribery and corruption among public officials have also come to light during the phone hacking investigation.

Akers said the investigation, which has commandeered 96 officers, is winding down, The Daily Telegraph reported Monday.